In the specific applicative field of this invention a well-recognized requirement is that information on the partial and overall travel times of a running vehicle should be provided in real time.
The difficulties encountered in filling this demand are intensified where several vehicles competent in a race are running around the same one track. In fact, it is not so easy to identify each of the vehicles and record all the run times around the track.
While some solutions have been proposed in the prior art to meet the above-mentioned requirement, these have shown to be less than fully satisfactory.
For instance, apparatus and recording systems have been known which are based on the use of photocells being linked to PC's through a so-called telephone loop to record the pass of each vehicle.
Other approaches make use of an RF transmitter installed on each vehicle in a race and a single receiver antenna buried beneath the track finish line.
While serving their purpose to some extent, the above prior solutions have presently become obsolete because they can only operate with a limited number of vehicles running at one time. In neither instances, moreover, can such conventional solutions provide for the transmission of engine, electrical or aerodynamic parameters of the running vehicles.
In addition, the apparatus employed in conventional measuring apparatus have operating rates which are liable to much interference from the traffic volume of data being transmitted, thereby they require intense maintenance by skilled personnel.
It should be further added that such prior apparatus are no permanent intallations, but are installed temporarily on a racetrack according to necessity, which entails considerable adjustment work by skilled personnel, lasting several hours, before each race.
The underlying technical problem of this invention is to provide an apparatus for measuring operational parameters and times of vehicles running around a racetrack in real time, which has such structural and functional features as to enable prompt identification of any of the vehicles in the race while providing measurements of partial and overall speed and travel times over the racetrack for each of the vehicles.
Another object of the invention is to enable transmission and computer processing of the measurement information from each vehicle.
This technical problem is solved by an apparatus as indicated, being characterized as in the appended claims.
The features and advantages of an apparatus according to the invention will become apparent from the following detailed description of an embodiment thereof, given by way of illustration and not of limitation with reference to the accompanying drawings.